Brinks Gang members made fateful stop in Coudersport

Gus Gusciora

In the summer of 1950, two of the America's most famous criminals passed through Coudersport, breaking into a downtown clothing store and helping themselves to the merchandise before continuing on their way.

This Coudersport connection helped investigators to solve the crime of the century: the famous Brinks Robbery in Boston, Mass.

Customized labels on the stolen clothing from Rosenbloom's Men's and Boys' Store on North Main Street clearly linked Stanley "Gus" Gusciora and Joseph "Specs" O'Keefe to the break-in.

Facing a long prison sentence and feeling abandoned by other members of the Brinks Gang, O'Keefe began to talk, ratting out his accomplices and bringing the marathon investigation to an end.

Gusciora and O'Keefe were "persons of interest" in the Brinks case, but still free men, when they drove through Coudersport on U.S. Rt. 6 and decided to break into Rosenbloom's. They made off with sport coats and other highend garments.

Earlier that year, they had helped to execute what was, at the time, the biggest theft in U.S. history: $1,218,211 in cash and more than $1.5 million in checks, money orders and other securities.

Specs O'Keefe ratted out the Brinks Gang and ended up a free man. He died in California in 1976 living under the witness protection program as Paul Williams.

The Jan. 17 robbery was the work of an 11-member gang, led by underworld figure Tony "Fats" Pino.

O'Keefe and Gusciora picked the locks to gain entry. They removed the cylinders from five locks so a

locksmith could make duplicate keys. The duo also stole the plans for the site's alarm system.

On Jan. 17, the Brinks Gang entered the building wearing rubber Halloween masks. Pino and a driver remained in the getaway car. They surprised, bound and gagged five employees who were storing and counting money.

Each member received a small cut and agreed not to touch the rest for six years, after which the statute of limitations would have run out.

But while the plan was perfect, the participants proved to be all too human.

Police put heat on every bookie and known thief in Boston. Soon the criminal underworld wanted the Brinks crew arrested more than the cops did.

In 1978, Universal Studios released The Brinks Job, a comedy based vaguely on the Brinks Robbery, starring Peter Falk as Tony Pino and Warren Oates (below) as Specs O'Keefe.

Pino, an Italian immigrant who was already a principal suspect in numerous major robberies and burglaries, was a prime suspect. Police also had their eyes on O'Keefe and

Gusciora.

On June 2, 1950, O'Keefe and Gusciora

left Boston by

automobile for the

alleged purpose of

visiting the grave of Gusciora's brother in Missouri. Apparently, they had planned a leisurely trip with an abundance of extracurricular activities.

On June 12, when they were arrested at Towanda, police discovered guns reported stolen in Kane and clothing taken during the Rosenbloom's heist. The garments were clearly marked with customized labels from the Coudersport clothier.

O'Keefe and Gusciora put the heat on Pino to supply money for legal fees. Once O'Keefe was released, pending trial for the thefts in Kane and Coudersport, he returned to Boston to personally pressure other Brinks Gang members for cash.

Warren Oates

As many as three attempts were made on O'Keefe's life, probably on Pino's orders. In the third episode, he took shots to the chest and wrist, but survived.

O'Keefe faced years in prison for the Pennsylvania burglaries, while his co-conspirators would enjoy the luxuries of life. On Jan. 6, 1956, feeling betrayed, O'Keefe spilled his guts to two FBI agents. A grand jury returned indictments against the 11 members of the Brinks gang.

Stanley Gusciora, his Rosenbloom's accomplice, died that July of a brain tumor and acute cerebral edema.

Eight members of the gang received life sentences; O'Keefe got four years and was released in 1960. Only $58,000 of the $2.7 million was recovered.

The rest is fabled to be hidden in the hills near Grand Rapids, Minn.